News & Updates

The World registers more than one million confirmed cases of COVID-19 patients

03 April 2020

COVID-19 is an ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus. The outbreak started in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, in December 2019. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020 and recognised it as a pandemic on 11 March 2020. As of today 4 April 2020, more than 1,026,974 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in more than 190 countries and 200 territories, resulting in more than 53,975 deaths. More than 217,433 people have recovered.

As of today 15:30 pm, 4th April, 2020 United States of America has the highest number of confirmed cases ie 245,573 cases, Italy has the highest number of deaths ie 13,915 deaths and Chain has the highest number of recovered patients ie 76,741.

The virus is mainly spread during close contact and by small droplets produced when people cough, sneeze, or talk. These small droplets may be produced during breathing but the virus is not generally airborne. People may also catch COVID-19 by touching a contaminated surface and then their eyes, nose or mouth. It is most contagious when people are symptomatic, although spread may be possible before symptoms appear. The time between exposure and symptom onset is typically around five days, but may range from 2 to 14 days. Common symptoms include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Complications may include pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome. There is no known vaccine or specific antiviral treatment. Recommended preventive measures include hand washing, covering one's mouth when coughing, maintaining distance from other people, and monitoring and self-isolation for people who suspect they are infected.

Efforts to prevent the virus spreading include travel restrictions, quarantines, curfews, workplace hazard controls, event postponements and cancellations, and facility closures. These include national or regional quarantines throughout the world, various border closures or incoming passenger restrictions, screening at airports and train stations, and outgoing passenger travel bans. The pandemic has led to severe global social economic disruption, the postponement or cancellation of sporting, religious, and cultural events, and widespread fears of supply shortages resulting in panic buying. Schools and universities have closed either on a nationwide or local basis in more than 160 countries, affecting more than 1.5 billion students.